This piece originally appeared in Humentum's A bridge to the future: Essays on a new era for global development. The compendium of essays expands on a dialogue that took place during Humentum’s Bridge to the Future strategic retreat on 15 April 2025. The event created space for deep reflection and fresh perspectives on the future of global development from a diverse set of actors – both traditional and new voices from civil society, the private sector and local government. A subset of attendees were invited to write essays to share their perspectives on the critical changes needed to move beyond...

This blog also appears on the website of the National Network of Local Philanthropy Development.    In February this year, the second meeting of the Measuring What Matters working group was held in Tangier, Morocco. We were warmly welcomed by the Tamkeen Community Foundation for Human Development. Their approach to work deserves a separate article, because it is a completely different approach in terms of the way of working above the goal of work. This trip coincided with a freeze in USAID funding and a reduction in support from other governments. In this context, the topic of measurement became even more important. Almost...